The Greenville times., 1887-11-19
CRIMINALS IN NEW CALEDONIA.
london Telegraph

An interesting account Of the pre-
ent status of the notorious Frenc
criminals in New Caledonia. has bee
furnished by an official who has ju.
returned from that penal colony. Tn
most respectable, as well as the seniol
of all the ronviets. is BerezOvski. tn
Pole who fired at the Emperor Alex
der ii during the Paris exhibition 0
1867. Frequent applications hay
been made for the liberation of Berez
oYski, but they have all been refused
He Is now in the island of Nou, wher
he occupies little room apart iron
all the bad characters. and has even
small garden for himself. He roam
about the island, which is one-fonrtl
of the size of Paris. at HIS own swee
will, and his conduct has always beel
irreproaehable. He receives a larg,
quantity Of newspapers, books anC
pamphlets from different countries b,
every mail. Berezovski IS now oil,
and feeble to an extreme degree.
or different class are Gilhes ant
Abadie. the murdsrePs of the Pari
grocer Lecercle. These worthies arr
employed as street scavengers at Non
mea and their occupation is looked
upon by their companions in pena
servitude as good one. for it is easy
and also enables them to pick up bit,
Of tobacco and various odds and ends
including occasional aims. Guichard
who murdered bank messenger Al
Marseilles, is doing well MS a stor,
clerk, and hopes one day, II not to gel
to Australia, at least to settle down in
New Caledonia as colonist. One o.
the most comfortable and thriving Of
the convicts is Fensyrou, the chemist
of the Boulevard Malesherbes. who
led the lover of his wife into an am.
bush at Chatou, and then murdered
him in most atrocious manner. This
criminal has passed through the variou,
categories until he arrived among the
first class convicts. He has Il share in
a farm which he and his wife superin.
tend, and he has under his orders some
of the lower class of criminals. Ills
life sentence has been commuted to
one of twenty years. The doctor who
was condemned for having sent pois-
oned game to colleague is giving
satisfaction. and hopes to be able to
attain the privileges accorded to Fen
ayrou.
On the whole the educated crimi.
mails, even those who are undergoing
sentences for serious crimes, are highly
spoken of by the governor of Nou-
mea, and the most unmitigated rascal'
are the Paris gamins and the BRITISH
peasants or laborers, most of whom
are murderers. Every year certain
of these has 10 be shot down
The official who uses his revolver
against the convicts is tried as form
ality by court martial and acquitted.
The number of convicts is 10000 or
more, and there are in addition 240
female convicts, who. however, were
sent out to Noumea of their own ac-
cord from the Maison Centraile of Paris
for the purpose of marrying first class
lnisdemeanants. These women are
by nuns. There are on the
island 600 warders. The number OF
first class convicts amounts to 1900.
aud some of them, like femayrous,
have been allowed TO send for their
wives. The State furnishes them with
agricultural implements, food, and even
q few head of cattle. when they are
permitted to begin farming, and they
generally contrive to dowell Another
class apart from oil the others. is com
posed Of skilled tradesmen and me-
musicians, and even actors.
These have savings bank of their
Dwn. q kind of club. and are almost
too prosperous for convicts. The
bandsmen are said to be as good as
many regimental performers, and they
play programmes of select music twice
, week before the governors mansion
besides giving occasional concerts.
From this il will be seen that the life
Df many convicts is far better than
hat which is led by thousands in the
,lums of Paris. and is no wonder that
such being the case, numerous trans
gressors against the law of the land.
those who commit the most
ierrible crimes, should view with long
ing and delight their dispatch to New
Caledonia by the clement mandate of
the president of the republic.